This invention relates to a multichannel magnetic head supporting mechanism for use, for instance, in a magnetic card reader or the like.
Recently a multichannel card reader has been used in a cash card system in preference to a single track specialized machine because of its versatility in expansion and mixing of various usages. In this case, the head must be formed as a multichannel construction. However, when deformation or bending occurs in the card constituting the recording medium, uniform contact between the card and the component magnetic heads is difficult to realize, thus making it difficult to obtain correct recording on an reproduction of the card. Any attempt to correct the deformation of the card forcibly for realizing uniform contact would necessitate an extremely strong compressive force which in turn requires a powerful card driving source and a very rugged head frame, which are not practical.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,028,734 entitled "PLURAL MAGNETIC HEAD ASSEMBLY WITH INDEPENDENT SUPPORTING STRUCTURE" discloses a construction wherein a number of magnetic heads are provided separately for a plurality of channels, and wherein the magnetic head are made contactable with the card in a sliding manner.
Although such a conventional construction permits vertical movement of the magnetic head with respect to the surface of the card, it prohibits other movement, thus making it impossible to completely follow the curved surface of a bent card. Furthermore, since the magnetic heads for a number of channels are held in a single head block, the mechanism involving the head block requires a large space, rendering the replacement of the magnetic head difficult, and making the construction uneconomical.